Friday, November 30, 2012

The waterfalls inside the Library of Darkrodin gushed their
powerful overflow now that a new tributary has increased its volume. Water
built up tremendous pressure against the hill, and an ensuing mudslide swept
through the weakened land covering the North Shore entrance to the Library.
Only fragments of that structure peer through the new cliff side.

Two domes from the Weeping Gate peer through the mudslide deposits. The original building still lies behind the cliff, but the Reader statue has washed away.

The Weeping Gate, having been entirely buried, is currently
replaced with a natural tunnel that formed in the new land formation. Entrance
to the Library from the North Shore is now gained by climbing among these sheer
walls of rock into the cave passageway. The Library’s balcony was altered to accommodate
access.

Among treasures washed from the library into the cave is an
ancient scroll that had been on display for over a year. It is now displayed au nature.

To find the new waterfall cliff, simply fly to the north
shore of ACC Alpha. You can’t miss it.

Monday, November 19, 2012

Even though most merchandise
in the virtual world is fantastically inexpensive, Second Life has its own kind
of ‘expensive’ economics for all we builders and residents. It’s called
counting your prims. On my sim ACC Alpha, keeping the 15,000 allowed prims in
mind is a constant challenge. Or should I say 14,000 since it is advised to
have at least 1,000 unused prims on a sim to reduce lag for visitors. I’m often
at a deficit (currently at 740 unused prims) because I rarely stop building new
things and refining my older builds.

Interior of the Pen Temple, as seen after passing through the Generator Room.

PEN TEMPLE

Such was the case
yesterday when creating the Pen Temple. In order to build it, I needed to walk
around the sim, storing other prims into inventory. First, let me tell you that
a pen temple is not a new concept to me, as I have made one in real life too. I
write and scribble a lot, and when the pens run out of ink, or the pencils are
sharpened down to stubs, I never throw them out. Instead, they are dropped into
a ceramic building I made. Hands together in prayer formation, and an informal
bow, I acknowledge the usefulness of that implement, and watch it fall into the
darkness surrounded by the company of many others. If in 2,000 years, this
temple is unearthed, the archeologist will undoubtedly be rather stumped. So, a
pen temple is my real life invention that I bring into SL.

An adventure
movie might dramatize a temple’s entrance with dangers where the hero risks his
life to reach the inner sanctum. By coincidence this is evident at the entry to
the Pen Temple as well. A small, narrow room at the base of Medusa Locks has
been an energy generator for over a year. (Medusa Locks is a Cliffside neighborhood).
Suited with large moving cogs and a needle sharp giant clock hand, this is not
a room you want to walk through. Nevertheless, the area in which I needed to
build the temple was just beyond this mechanical nightmare. The whole was made
phantom, so a visitor can easily pass through the machine if they realize there
is something to see beyond it. And what lies beyond it? Is it a huge secret
room like the Library of Darkrodin further down the Medusa Locks? Is it dark
and mysterious? Actually, it is more than all that. It is common. The room is
small. There is an old bed with a candle, and simple book shelves line the
walls. Pens and pencils are appropriately scattered around. Why is it so small
and simple? The message: in the world of ideas, not much is needed beyond the
imagination. From this little room, anything can be written.

Looking into the Bookbinders work space. The centaur carries a needle to sew signatures.

BOOKBINDERS on the STEPS

Immediately after completing the Pen Temple, I
had another idea for the Medusa Locks. “Bakery on the Steps” was a fun place
where you could knead dough with a view onto the bay, but with my friend, Lilia
Artis’ “Cake Thieves Patisserie”, there was no longer a need for two pastry
houses. What I really wanted was a book bindery. The furnishings of the bakery
were taken into inventory to make room for the new establishment. It makes
sense to have bookbinders residing so close to the Library of Darkrodin which
is just a short walk from this cell.

BACK TO THE DEFICIT

The only way to
approach prim balance properly is to have a list of items that I am willing to
remove from the sim in exchange for the new builds. It’s never easy. It’s never
easy. It’s never easy. But every once in a while, I hit that 1,000 unused
prims. There is an incentive: with the Renaissance Hunt beginning in December,
I am hoping to reduce lag as much as possible for the visitors.